Residents have complained about "ghost trains" at the safety rails; this is where the safety bars come down but no train passes through, affecting traffic on Del Obispo Street. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Tom Wittman's home might rest atop a hill outside the hustle and bustle of the city on Paseo Laguna, but he said he and his wife are at the mercy of the train horns below. Every night, freight trains blast their horns and the sound billows up from the valley, amplified by what he calls an "amphitheater effect."

"It's an incredible nightmare we live with daily," Wittman said. "Had I known this was going to be like this, I would have never moved here. ... These aren't cute little train whistles. There are things that have changed that have caused us to be irate."

Wittman said he's angry because rail-crossing improvements have been made that could silence many of the horns – including a few that he's lost sleep over – but San Juan Capistrano hasn't yet formally applied for "quiet zone" status, meaning trains continue to sound their horns as they reach crossings.

Federal changes to train horn warnings went into effect in 2005, which included requiring four blasts of the horn in a specific pattern. Wittman said that's when the noise became much more audible. But the rule also established a path for cities to apply for quiet zones, meaning certain crossings wouldn't have to blow the horn usually required under state and federal law.

As a result, many Orange County cities have managed to quiet trains in cooperation with the Orange County Transportation Authority. The authority, as part of an $85 million rail safety enhancement plan, has built the necessary infrastructure in eight cities to apply for quiet zone status, including San Juan Capistrano. Participating cities have contributed 12 percent of the project's cost.

Improvements made through the program included upgraded warning devices, additional gate arms, extended and raised medians, improved signage and coordinated traffic signals.

Many crossings in Anaheim, Irvine, Orange, San Clemente, Santa Ana and Tustin have been silenced, and recent applicant Dana Point awaits a new quiet zone effective Feb. 14.

Of the 63 crossings in Orange County that field daily freight, commuter and passenger rail traffic, the authority has improved or plans to improve 57, said spokesman Joel Zlotnik. Of those crossings, 37 have been quieted through the authority program, with the Dana Point crossing soon bringing the total to 38.

Why hasn't San Juan Capistrano added its five stops to the list, more than a year after the project finished?

The city's insurer, which also insures Dana Point and San Clemente, previously excluded quiet zones from coverage. But after years of discussion, the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority was to include quiet zones as of last week, said Tom Bokosky, the city's human-resources manager.

Bokosky said it took some convincing by the three cities to get the necessary coverage.

"When the whole idea of quiet zones came about, it was a new idea, a new concept, and when the insurance pool learned of it and they made a decision to specifically exclude anything related to a quiet zone from coverage," Bokosky said. "I think it was because it was new, there wasn't any loss data on it, and it was really out of a fear of the unknown more than anything else."

Insurance Authority Chief Executive Jonathan Shull explained how previously the agency had concerns with some wording in contracts between the transportation authority, rail authority and cities.

"Those issues have been resolved, and for a couple of situations we needed to get some insurance in place in order to provide some coverage and we've been able to do that now," Shull said. "So we're excited for the cities that the quiet zones can move forward."

But Wittman fears the pursuit of a quiet zone could be forgotten amid other city work. The issue was not on the council agenda for this week's meeting, and Wittman fears it might never be.

Related Links

Residents have complained about "ghost trains" at the safety rails; this is where the safety bars come down but no train passes through, affecting traffic on Del Obispo Street. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Resident Tom Wittman shows the safety railing installed at the train crossing on Del Obispo Street. Despite safety improvements at five crossings in San Juan Capistrano, the city has yet to designate these crossings as quiet zones. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tom Wittman sits on the end of his bed Friday morning. Wittman has been unable to sleep through the night because the sound coming from the trains is amplified as it travels up the hill. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
The San Juan Hills Golf Club is settled behind Tom Wittman's home, and he says the territory creates an amphitheater effect, making the train's horns sound louder and more resonant. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tom Wittman has been unable to sleep through the night because the sound coming from the trains is amplified as it travels up a hill. He's installed double-paned windows but there are as many as 10 trains passing each night that sound their horns. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tom Wittman sits on the end of his bed Friday morning. Wittman and his wife have been unable to sleep peacefully through the night because the sound coming from the trains is amplified as it travels up the hill. He's installed double-paned windows but there are as many as 10 trains passing each night that sound their horns. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
An Amtrak train departing from the San Juan Capistrano station passes over Del Obispo Street. ISAAC ARJONILLA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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